Sunday, July 20, 2014

In Australia we eat approximately 470 millions chicken a year. That's equivalent to 20 chicken per person per year. Boss man is someone who is out there to beat that average by miles because he loves to eat chicken. And out of all chicken dishes, this Hainanese Chicken Rice is his favourite dish.The chicken is poached gently in water till tender and
juicy, the chicken rice garlicky and buttery (optional of course), combined with
fragrant special soy sauce and lemony garlic chilli sauce… every spoonful is
accompanied with a satisfied: MMMMmmmmmm!!! Even the little toddler knows it’s
a special day when mummy cooks this!

The
following is my version- tweaked from many fun attempts =)

Hainanese chicken
rice:

Step 1- for poached chicken:

1 whole
chicken (reserve 2 T of chicken fat/skin for chicken rice)

Salt

Sesame oil

Cucumber and
coriander for garnish

1. Rub
chicken with salt and leave for 5 minutes. Rinse.

2. Place
chicken in a pot of boiling water, ensure chicken is submerged in water. Partly
cover. Bring to boil, then reduce heat to
medium so that water is at a rolling boil. Gently boil for 15 minutes. Turn off heat completely, cover pot, and allow
chicken to remain in hot water for 20 minutes .

Saturday, July 19, 2014

Instead of the usual shopping therapy, I have spent the last few Friday nights undergoing "bread-making therapy." The process of kneading, waiting..., kneading again, sipping wine on more waiting..., and finally the exciting sound of the alarm timer,the smell of the bread, and the sight of brown crust of the final products are deeply therapeutic (in fact a little bit addictive). The whole experience relaxes me (or... is it just the wine?).

I usually began these nights by first "parking" my little boy and husband outside of the kitchen, i.e. let them watch TV together. Then I hid myself baking wonderful things....Tonight that thing was braided
bread.

Here’s
the youtube link where I learnt how to braid six strands of bread dough.

1. In
a large bowl, sprinkle yeast over barely warm water. Beat in sugar, oil,egg
yolks, and salt. Add the flour one cup at a time, beating after each addition,
graduating to kneading with hands as dough thickens. Knead until smooth and
elastic and no longer sticky, adding flour as needed. Cover with a damp clean
cloth and let rise for 1 1/2 hours or until dough has doubled in bulk.(I placed all ingredients into the kitchen aid, and knead at slow
speed for 15 minutes)

2. Punch down the risen dough and turn out onto floured board. Knead for five minutes or so, adding flour as needed to keep
from getting sticky(Again, the kitchenaid did most of the work here). Divide in half. Divide each half into six and roll into long strands about 1 1/2 inches in
diameter. Pinch the ends of the six strands together firmly and braid.Grease two baking trays and place finished braid on it. Cover with
towel and let rise about half an hour.
3.Preheat oven to 180 C.
4. Beat the remaining egg and brush a generous amount over each braid.
Sprinkle with sesame or poppy seeds if desired.
5. Bake for about 40 minutes. Bread should have a nice hollow sound when
thumped on the bottom. Cool on a rack before slicing.

Give
this recipe a go! It will fill your house with the delightful smell of fresh
bread, and make you feel GOOD.